The last time I felt this way? Has to be the mid-1980s when Magic and Larry were going at it in tight shorts that looked like they were painted on. That's been 20 years.

After that Isiah Thomas and the Detroit "Bad Boys'' took thuggery and a plodding style to a low level. Then, as great as Michael Jordan was, there was always the feeling everyone else was playing for second as six titles bore out. And if the Bulls weren't playing, national ratings were in the dumper.

When Pat Riley was with the Knicks, he nearly ruined the NBA interest with his milk-the-shot-clock and dump-it-down-low offense, and hack it up on defense, and all those 74-70 playoff games. It was mind-numbing.

It never helped that the NBA playoffs came on the heels of the NCAA tournament. March was one-and-wonderfully-done insanity full of Cinderellas, upsets and unpredictability. We went from 64 teams to the Final Four in 11 days, to a national champion in 18 with more drama than anything on "24.''

The NBA playoffs started with half the field not even deserving of the postseason. The first game of a seven-game series was on a Tuesday, the next on a Saturday. It was an exercise in tedium.

It took 10 days for the Lakers or Bulls to sweep some poor schmuck, 4-0. Enough. Wake me in six weeks when it's Game 6 of the Finals.

But the NBA has had a sudden reawakening of fast breaks, clutch shots and execution. Now it's Must-See TV. It's May Madness, March's older cousin, and it seems to be happening every night. The Ugly Duckling has transformed into a beautiful swan with a new generation of stars leading the way.

Maybe being a Texan colored my outlook of the Mavs-Spurs epic seven-game series, but I doubt it.

I don't know how even the casual fan could not find absolutely compelling a series in which six of seven games were decided on the last possession of regulation.

It was one of the greatest NBA series of all time, though it will probably eventually get lost in hoops history since it was a second-round series. But if someone can't like that series, they don't like basketball, or sports for that matter.

But it's more than those two. So far, 14 games have been decided by one or two points. A total of 24 have been decided by five or fewer. There have been nine overtime games, and four Game Sevens.

Now if a team wins 100-93, it's considered a blowout.

Sometimes the NBA has been too good for its own good. When a collection of the best athletes in the world collide, their talent can be taken for granted. It doesn't seem to stand out when everyone is making athletic plays.

But now it's amazing. Dirk Nowitzki is a one-of-a-kind, a 7-footer who can get 15 rebounds and knock down five three-pointers. Steve Nash must have three pairs of eyes. Tim Duncan is a great warrior, one of the best centers in NBA history.

LeBron James may not be the next Jordan, but he's come of age into the game's next superstar. And to think, he would be a junior in college. And if some weren't so anxious to put a "Next Jordan'' label on James, they'd probably do so on Miami's Dwyane Wade.

Maybe it's because this is the first time in a while I've paid attention, or the first time the game has caused me to pay attention, but there's a beauty to the athleticism played at the game's highest level not seen in two decades.

Teams don't need a dominant big man any more to win. Only one, the Heat's aging Shaq, has one. You better be able to run, shoot and jump. The Suns have the best collection of those kind of athletes since the Showtime Lakers of the 1980s and that's with the most athletic of all, Amare Stoudamire, injured all season.

Jason Terry scores on a jumper for the Mavs, and five seconds later, Shawn Marion is racing the other way for a layup. It's great stuff.

This postseason has made watching basketball in the late May worth the investment. And it's about time.

Jon Mark Beilue is sports editor of the Globe-News. He can be reached at jon.beilue@amarillo.com.